Learning to take somebodys RT

Many say their mum was the primary person to take their rectal temperature. I was wondering how women 'learn' how to do that. For example, to make an RT painless, one needs to consider the angle of insertion, which depends on the patient's position. So how do women know about this? Own experience, playing with partners, asking medical stuff, try and error?

In addition to having mine taken many times, I got to see my brother and cousin (f) get theirs taken rectally. So, I had a pretty good idea how to do it. When I was about 18, mom came down with the flu and was in bed. Mom, a no-nonsense Austrian woman, pointed to the bedside drawer, and told me to take her temperature. The rectal method was the only way she took it. She told me, step-by-step, how to shake the rectal thermometer down to 96 degrees, Vaseline it, separate her bottom cheeks, and insert it. When she was satisfied, she turned over onto her tummy, pulled down her pajama pants and undies, and told me to proceed. I think that I was more embarrassed than she was, since she was a pediatric nurse. After 5 minutes of holding it in place between her pale behind, I removed it, cleaned it and informed her it read 101.4, as I recall. She just pulled up her pj pants faced me, and acted like nothing was wrong. I took her temp a few more times for a few days. That's how I learned to do it!

It isn’t Rocket Surgery! There are instructions, but it isn’t that hard to figure out. You put it in the butt. Main issue would be how long to leave it in to get a good reading.